She Likes Me!
by Arcynic
Summary: Some are the romantic type... flowers, poetry, the whole shebang! ...And others just aren't as illustrated by Makino Ruki and Akiyama Ryou... [Oneshot]


A strange idea that came into my head while I was trying to sleep yesterday... I ended up sleeping at around 2: 30... I had a final today too... But I passed happily so all is good and well, so here we go!  
  
___________________  
  
A cool breeze swept through the city of Shinjuku. A young female, no more than 14 years of age, with dark auburn hair and lighting yellow streaks tied back into a spiky ponytail shivered as she pulled her jacket closer to her body. She did not shiver from the cold however, as the cold never seemed to bother her, no, she shivered from something far worse.  
  
Makino, Ruki was afraid.  
  
For the past few days, Ruki had felt as if someone or something was following her everyday after school while she walked home. No... feelings could easily be misinterpreted, Ruki *knew* that someone or something was following her home after school. Whatever it was, *it* was very well trained as even Ruki, with her heightened senses that came from being a Digimon Tamer could never catch them in the act.  
  
A twig snapped, clear as a bell, for the streets were empty that night. Ruki dared not move, or even breathe. She could hear it breathing right behind her, a distance so close that a mere step would destroy it.  
  
Agonizing silence.  
  
In a sudden wave of panic, Ruki ran for it, making a beeline towards the safety of her home. She could hear the footfalls behind her, echoing across the stretches of the boulevard, but she didn't look back.  
  
Faster. Faster. Faster. Like a mantra, the words repeated itself in her mind, willing her legs to move much quicker than they already were. Her breathing became labored, and her legs felt like jelly, but Ruki did a miraculous job of letting it go undetected by whatever was thundering after her.  
  
She was afraid, yes, she would admit that, but she wouldn't go down without a fight.  
  
After what seemed like an excruciatingly eternity, Ruki finally saw the porch light of her home, her sanctuary. Renewed with adrenaline filled vigor, Ruki made a mad dash for the door, which she entered and shut in the blink of an eye.  
  
Resting her head upon the door with her heart hammering in her chest Ruki once again heard the soft breathing of another life. She clung to the doorknob with all her might, even though it was already locked, and silently waited for the departure of her mysterious stalker.  
  
After what seemed like a painfully long time, Ruki finally heard something fall gently to the ground, a scuffling or shoes, and then silence.  
  
Glorious silence.  
  
Makino Ruki never appreciated the sweet sound of nothingness as much as she did in that very instant.  
  
Heart still beating erratically, Ruki paused for a moment, her curiosity overcoming her initial fear, and opened the door, albeit slowly and steadily, so that it made absolutely no noise. Staring outside of her house Ruki's violet colored eyes widened in sheer astonishment and disbelief, for on her porch lay a beautiful bouquet of lavender roses wrapped up in cherubic pink paper.  
  
Picking them up with gentle ease, Ruki caressed one of the petals gently, the paper crinkling slightly under the weight. Pinned to the side of the bouquet was a note with one word on it.  
  
Her name. Makino, Ruki. Meaning that these flowers were for her.  
  
Walking back into the house Ruki made to dump the beautiful roses into the first trash can she came across. She abhorred flowers. As her hands were about to let go, however, Ruki stopped briefly reconsidering, and then ripped her name off the bouquet, letting it fall into the trash, while keeping a steady grip on the roses.  
  
Dragging her slippered feet across the polished wood floors of her home, flowers still in hand, Ruki paused at the door of her mother's room before setting them down carefully. She then proceeded to her own room to ponder the strangeness of the entire situation.  
  
Her mother's favorite flower *was* the rose after all.  
  
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"That's adorable!" A girl with bright amber eyes and honey colored hair exclaimed to her less than ecstatic looking friend. "Ne, Puppet-chan?"  
  
Yes, despite the fact that Katou Juri was 14 bordering on 15, she still refused to go anywhere without the fox/dog-like puppet on her hand made of felt and 2 buttons, affectionately dubbed 'Puppet-chan'.  
  
Both puppet and human head nodded at each other before turning to the 3 member of their party, who was staring at the 2 through half lidded eyes, an expression of incredulity on her face. The two- erm- three were currently in the city's most popular ice cream parlor, enjoying the day off from school.  
  
"Adorable? ADORABLE?" Ruki asked them both, eyes widening in horror as she recounted her previous night. "I didn't sleep with one eye open because I thought it was adorable, Juri."  
  
"But whoever it was left you roses." Juri reasoned her trademark sunny smile on her face.  
  
"I. Hate. Roses." Ruki reminded her best friend as she took a long sip of her milk shake.  
  
"It's the thought that counts." Juri- wait- no, Puppet-chan 'said' thoughtfully while Juri took a bite out of her ice cream sundae. Far past the awe of seeing Puppet-chan talk while Juri's mouth was already occupied, Ruki simply glared at the yellow piece of cloth and spoke as if she regarded Puppet-chan as a real being.  
  
"If whoever sent me the roses did not stalk me and scare me half to death, then I would probably see things your way Ju- ah sorry- Puppet-chan." As she stopped short, Ruki shivered unconsciously, wrapping her arms around herself in a protective embrace. "It's just downright creepy, the feeling you get when you can feel someone's eyes on you." Here she wriggled her fingers at Juri and Puppet-chan as if she were illustrating an army of ants.  
  
Juri placed her empty spoon on the tip of her lip gently and absentmindedly stated, "I bet its Ryou."  
  
"And you can hear its labored breathing and- eh? What's Ryou?" Ruki stopped in mid-rant while looking curiously at Juri.  
  
"The person that sent you the flowers." Ruki, who had just taken another sip of her milk shake, spit it back out, leaving a strawberry mess on the floor.  
  
"Ew..." Puppet-chan whined from beside Juri.  
  
"Ryou?" Ruki asked skeptically, wiping her mouth with a stray napkin.  
  
"He does like you." Juri pointed out the obvious.  
  
"But he wouldn't stalk me." Juri averted her gaze at this statement, leaving Ruki dumbfounded.  
  
"Would he?!?" Ruki asked and yelled at the same time, eyes widening in horror. Juri, quick to reassure, waved both hands ("I'm getting dizzy!" Puppet-chan moaned) in front of her as a peaceful surrendering gesture, "O- of course not!"  
  
Not quite as convinced as she had been at first, Ruki frowned as she took another daring sip of her milkshake. 'Ryou wasn't the stalker type... was he...?' her mind wondered to herself as Ruki lost herself in Juri's cheerfully random chatter.  
  
___________________  
  
Juri walked with Ruki home most of the way until she assured her best friend that she could manage the few blocks home from here. Still worried, Juri waved goodbye to Ruki at the corner of the street, looking back at Ruki frequently as if expecting to see a shadow lurking after her friend. Despite the fact that Juri had taken the matter rather comically during their time together, it was only so that Ruki wouldn't be riddled with unpleasant thoughts for at least one portion of the day.  
  
On her own once again, Ruki noted with relief that the streets were at least filled with many loitering pedestrians. She made it home incident free and was fairly surprised to see Ryou standing on the porch by the door as she made her way up the stone cobbled path towards it. She was about to wave a friendly hello in greeting, when she suddenly caught sight of something in his hands.  
  
A bouquet of lavender roses.  
  
Ruki exhaled sharply as if she had just been punched in the stomach. Ears perking up at the noise, Ryou turned his head and smiled jovially. "Hey Ruki!"  
  
She stood absolutely immobile, blood pounding in her ears, 'Ryou is the stalker. Ryou is the stalker. Ryou is the stalker.'  
  
The chocolate haired cerulean eyed teen blinked in worry as he leapt off Ruki's porch with ease and began walking to where she had stopped in the middle of the path, "Ruki? Are you okay? What's wrong?"  
  
'Run. Run. Run. RUN!' Ruki's mind screamed furiously at her with every step he took, but the rational side of her was too numb with shock and betrayal. It wasn't until he finally stood right in front of her and waved a hand in front of her face that Ruki's watery legs finally obeyed her mind and she took a shaking step back.  
  
Hurt and confused, Ryou looked at her with somber eyes, "What..."  
  
'Ryou... Akiyama, Ryou... WAIT A MINUTE!' Ruki blinked and her mind became clear. 'He's Akiyama, Ryou! What was she so afraid of?'  
  
"SO IT WAS YOU ALL ALONG!" Ruki yelled at him, her anger easily dissolving any fear that she had left. She took a step towards him, poking him hard in the chest with every word she spoke. If Ruki could do one thing well, it was intimidate.  
  
"You were the one that was following me everyday after school for the past few days! You were the one who scared the living daylights out of me yesterday night! IT WAS YOU WHO LEFT THAT DAMN BOUQUET OF ROSES ON MY PORCH WHEN YOU KNOW VERY WELL THAT I HATE FLOWERS!" Ruki bellowed at him, her eyes blazing with fury.  
  
"Roses?" Ryou asked, quite confused, "Like this one I found on your porch?" He held up the incriminating evidence in his right hand, truly puzzled.  
  
"YES LIKE THAT ONE YOU... found... on... my... porch?" Embarrassment and shame filled her face as Ruki mentally berated herself for being too quick to judge.  
  
"Ruki san! I'm so sorry!"  
  
Ruki stumbled forward with a yelp from the surprise greeting that came out of the thin air behind her. She bumped into Ryou, which sent them both sprawling to the ground. Looking up with a glare that turned into surprise, Ruki regarded the young male that stood before her, bowing so low that his head almost touched the ground. Recognition hit as she tried to flesh out his name from the tip of her tongue, "Ku- Ko- Ka- Kabuto sempai...?"  
  
'Now what in the world is the kendo club's president here for? And what is he apologizing about?' Ruki's mind looked at him completely baffled.  
  
"I... I never meant to scare you!"  
  
Ruki blanched. 'Does he mean...?'  
  
"It's just that I... I like Ruki san a lot, but I was always afraid to approach you so I just followed behind you, and the flowers! I did not realize that it would offend you in some way! I'm sorry!" With this, the raven haired teen bowed in apology again, took the offending bouquet of lavender roses that had flown out of Ryou's grasp when they had fallen, and disappeared almost instantly.  
  
'Well...' Ruki mused to herself, 'That explains the stealth and... everything else basically.'  
  
"Ano Ruki?" Ryou's voice asked.  
  
"Hnn?" She muttered noncommittally, still lost in her thoughts.  
  
"As much as I love the fact that you're sitting on me, I kinda miss the feeling of my spine." Ryou smiled playfully up at her while she rolled her eyes and got off. Offering him a hand up, Ryou gratefully accepted and hoisted himself up.  
  
"I'm sorry for suspecting you." Ruki muttered, looking away from Ryou. He grinned easily, "No problem, but what made you so sure that I was the culprit...?"  
  
Ruki shrugged, "What was I supposed to think when I come home to see you standing on my porch with an exact replica of the roses my so called stalker sent me?" She seemed as if she were going to say more, but shook her head and decided against it.  
  
"And...?" He pursued her unspoken answer.  
  
"Well... you do seem an awful lot like the romantic type, you know, flowers, poetry, the whole she-bang..." She trailed off.  
  
"Oh, I am." Ryou smiled innocently.  
  
"So then why don't you-" Ruki's violet eyes widened as she clapped her hands over her mouth, her cheeks coloring slightly.  
  
"Why don't I do those things for you?" Ryo prodded, smiling his charming smile.  
  
"Mere curiosity!" She shouted back a bit too quickly. He smiled again, absolutely adoring the look of false indifference on her face.  
  
"Because you're not the romantic type." He stated casually, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. She blinked.  
  
"If I had done those things for you, would it impress you, Ruki?" He asked her, all joking aside.  
  
"No, it wouldn't." Ruki said contemplatively, understanding Ryou's logic. An awkward silence followed this statement, with Ruki casting curious glances at Ryou every now and then.  
  
"Ruki, if you want to ask me a question, just ask it." Ryou commented lazily, not even turning his head towards hers.  
  
"If I'm not the romantic type..." She trailed off, childish curiosity lingering in her voice.  
  
"You, Ruki, are the kindergarten type." He said carelessly, without hesitation. She stared at him oddly, having expected anything but that remark.  
  
"What do you...?" She started off until Ryou did the unimaginable...  
  
He punched her, square in the arm.  
  
Swearing profusely, like there was no tomorrow, Ruki narrowed her eyes at the older boy who was still smiling that annoyingly laid-back smile. "What in the HEL-"  
  
"I like you Ruki."  
  
Upon understanding Ryou's twisted logic once again, Ruki suddenly found his annoyingly laid-back smile very contagious, and both of them began to laugh heartily.  
  
"...Ne, Ryou?" Ruki asked after their chuckles had subsided.  
  
"Yes Ruki?"  
  
"I like you too." She stated, glancing at the older boy beside her. His face was indecipherable for a moment, until a large and truly happy grin formed itself on his face. She smiled as well, her violet eyes crinkling slightly.  
  
And then she punched him, right in the eye.  
  
Stepping over his still form and walking back into her house, Ruki didn't look back once, though she did say a light hearted, "Bye Ryou."  
  
Lying on the cobblestone path of Ruki's house, Ryou didn't care that it was the second time in one hour that he had eaten dirt, nor did he care that tomorrow, his normally flawless tanned face would also contain a large purple bruise on his left eye. The only thought that occupied Akiyama Ryou's mind for the moment was...  
  
'She likes me!'  
  
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::Warning! Long author's note ahead! Only read if you want to or are confused about the kindergarten bit. But review nonetheless! ^__^::  
  
Bunni: And that concludes my strange strange fic. Thinking back on it, I could probably have done without the stalker bit, but it made it funnier in the end, not to mention, it was very fun to write!  
  
It's also pretty choppy and probably confusing, because this was a spontaneous fic that was thought up, written, and uploaded in a day. For example, if you didn't get the kindergarten bit, there's that expression or saying that when a little boy pushes you in the sand box or teases you a lot, he really likes you, which hopefully explains that.  
  
As to the reason I wrote this fic spontaneously instead of planning almost every excruciating detail, like I do with my other ones, is for 3 reasons I suppose.  
  
One is to get my Ryuki loving friend off my back until she yells at me to write more... (Selece no Baakaa! xP)  
  
Two is to experiment with my spontaneous writing caliber (unlike my other fics, this hasn't even been read over once entirely to revise.)  
  
Reason number 3 would have been that this fic was supposed to be one of my shorter planned fics, (which was why I was writing this random plot instead of the millions I said I would on my profile) but has blossomed into an 11 page story. (Though compared to my kouzumi one shot , this is a lot shorter.) So I guess there are really only 2 reasons.  
  
In any case, whether you liked it or not, please review, and tell me if I pulled off the spontaneous fic idea even remotely well or not so I can contemplate on whether to ever try this again. Thank you! 


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